Wall of Valor:Lieutenant Kavanaugh was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for extraordinary achievement during sustained operational activity against the enemy as a pilot of C-47's an dC-46's on missions from New Guinea, Beak and the Philippines.

Missions included dropping supplies, transporting troops to advanced positions and evacuating the wounded. Flights involved flying at low altitudes over mountainous terrain under adverse weather conditions in an unarmed transport airplane, which often necessitated landing within a few miles of enemy bases where hostile contact was both probable and expected.